Mass Layoffs Up Suicide-Related Behavior Among Teens

Researchers have found that mass layoff can up suicide attempts and other suicide-related behavior among teens.

One of the third common cause of death among American youths aged between 10-24 years is suicide. Annually, nearly 4.600 American youth die due to suicide. The researchers of this study hope to help mental health workers spot teens who are at a high risk of suicide.

The study led by Duke University researchers shows that when 1 percent of the working population in state lose their jobs, there is a 2-3 percent rise in suicide-related behavior among girls and black adolescents in the following year.  Among girls, only the rate of suicide and suicide plans increased; while among the black teens there was a rise in all thoughts of suicide, suicide plans and suicide attempts.

"Job loss can be an unanticipated shock to a community," said Gassman-Pines, who teaches public policy at Duke's Sanford School of Public Policy and is a faculty fellow of the Duke Center for Child and Family Policy. "We know that suicide increases among adults when communities are hit with widespread layoffs. Now we have evidence that teenagers are similarly affected."

The researchers based their finding on the evaluation of 403,457 adolescents who were surveyed from 1997-2009. The researchers also looked at the mass layoffs and closings in nearly 50 states and the District of Columbia, using information retrieved from the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics. During the analysis, the researchers took into considerations factors like poverty rate and overall unemployment.

"Job loss was not simply a proxy for other aspects of the state's economic climate, but instead represented a meaningful economic shock, which led to changes in girls' and black adolescents' suicide-related behaviors," Gassman-Pines writes.

In girls, economic problems worsened the existing tendencies. Girls were seen to have higher rate of suicide ideation and planning when compared to boys. The rate of suicide attempts was higher among black teens than other people.

The finding was documented in the American Journal of Public Health.